Vending and temperature modification device



7, 1965 E. T. SWANEY 3,200,925

VENDING AND TEMPERATURE MODIFICATION DEVICE Filed May 8, 1962 4Sheets-Sheet 11 FIG. I

INVENT'OR EARL T. SWANEY ATTORNEY 7, 1965 E. T. SWANEY 3,200,925

VENDING AND TEMPERATURE MODIFICATION DEVICE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May8, 1962 FIG. 4

INVENTOR EAR L T. SWAN EY 4 7 42M "W J? ,j/ ATTORNEY Aug. 17, 1965 E. T.SWANEY 3,200,925

VENDING AND TEMPERATURE MODIFICATION DEVICE Filed May 8, 1962 4Sheets-Sheet 3 F|G.6 FIG. 7

FIG. 9

INVENTOR EARL T. SWANEY Aug. 17, 1965 E. "r. SWANEY VENDING ANDTEMPERATURE MODIFICATION DEVICE 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed May 8. 1962 FIG.l5

FIG. II

m H m m W e W m Wm m T V El L h J m E 4 w A M FIG.|4

FIG. 12

United States Patent 3,200,925 VENDING AND TEMPERATURE MODIFICATIQNDEVICE Earl T. Swaney, Vidalia, Ga., assignor to Wilburn W. WoodcockFiled May 8, 1962, Ser. No. 193,108 6 Claims. (Cl. 194-72) Thisinvention relates to commodities in common use, to the production,preparation and use of such commodities, and to equipment forfacilitating the availability and use of such commodities.

The invention relates particularly to apparatus or equipment forcontaining coffee, coffee substitutes or other beverages or substancesincluding in dry condition for convenient availability in variouslocations for ready use and to the preparation of such beverages forconsumption or other use.

Coffee, coffee substitutes, and the like are consumed extensively and,in fact, to such an extent that they are provided in public and privatelocations, and are served by various business enterprises includinghotels, motor courts, and many other places with more or less control ofthe dispensing thereof, and various ways have been employed for thedispensing thereof for the convenience of the consumer.

It is an object of the invention to provide a coincontrolled coffee orother beverage vending and temperature modification device by which abeverage such as coffee or other substances can be contained in a smallpackage or in small bulk with a sweetening agent and with a cream orappropriate additive as well as a container for water or other liquid, atemperature modification means, a vessel in which the temperature of thewater can be modified, and individual cups or drinking elements.

Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus for dispensingrelatively small packages, one at a time, from a stack or supply of suchpackages and to prevent unauthorized access to or removal of thepackages.

A further object of the invention is to provide coincontrolled mechanismin which the coin functions as a portion of the operating mechanism todispense a package from a stack or supply of packages.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective illustrating one application of the invention;

FIG. 2, a perspective of one of the packages dispensed by the apparatusof FIG. 1;

FIG. 3, an exploded perspective of the package of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4, an enlarged section on line 4--4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5, a section on the line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6, a section on the line 6-6 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7, a section on the line 7-7 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8, an enlarged fragmentary section on the line s s of FIG. 4;

FIG. 9, a section on the line 9-9 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10, a bottom plan view of the structure of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11, a fragmentary section of the coin operated mechanismillustrating the first step of the operation;

FIG. 12, a section on the line 12-12 of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13, a fragmentary section similar to FIG. 11 illustrating thesecond step of the operation;

FIG. 14, a section on the line 14--14 of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15, a fragementary section similar to FIG. 11 illustrating thethird step of the operation;

FIG. 16, a section on the line 1616 of FIG. and

FIG. 17, a fragmentary detail of the coin stop lever.

Briefly stated, the present invention is a vending machine includingcoin-controlled apparatus for dispensing 32%,925 Patented Aug. 1?, 1965packages of beverages in powdered form in such a manner that when anoperating lever is pressed the coincontrolled mechanism activates aplurality of holding members to dispense a package. Certain of theholding members are adapted to grasp a stack of containers while otherholding members release the lowermost container from the stack and acontainer thus dispensed falls by gravity onto a delivery tray fromwhich it may be removed by the operator of the machine. The apparatusincludes a heating element operatively associated with the dispensingmechanism, a vessel for heating water, a container for Water to beheated, and a dispenser for cups located on one side of the machine toprovide a complete unit for the dispensing and preparation of abeverage.

With continued reference to the drawings, the present inventioncomprises a housing 10 adapted to be mounted on the wall structure 11 ofa building or, if desired, may rest on any flat surface such as a tabletop. The housing 10 includes a front 12, ends 13 and 14, a top 15 and aback plate 16. The top 15 is provided with a hot plate 17 or othertemperature modifying apparatus confined within an auxiliary housing 18.The hot plate 17 is of conventional construction and includes resistancewires supplied with electrical current through conduits 19 andcontrolled by a switch 20.

A miniature coffee container 21 or other vessel for heating water isprovided and adapted to be received on the hot plate 17 so that when theswitch 20 is closed such hot plate will cause water within the vessel 21to reach boiling temperature. Water for the vessel 21 is provided in apitcher or thermos type container 22 on the top 15 adjacent to thehousing 18.

After preparation the product is put into containers for consumption andsuch containers 27 may be provided in a holder or dispenser 28 mountedby a bracket 29 to the end 13 of the housing. The containers 27 areremovable from the dispenser 28 in a conventional manner by a downwardpull on the lowermost container, whereupon the remaining containers willmove downwardly by gravity to present the next succeeding container tothe lowermost position within the dispenser for ready access.

The housing 10 is adapted to contain a plurality of stacks of packages35 of substantially uniform size and shape. Each package contains anenvelope 36 with a predetermined amount of material therein for making abeverage such as instant coffee, chocolate or the like, an envelope 37containing a sweetening agent such as sugar, an envelope 38 containingcream in powdered form, and a stick or stirring member 39 for completelyintegrating the beverage and the additives prior to consumption.

The front 12 of the housing has an outwardly turned flange 46 providedwith upstanding pins d]. for mounting a facade 42 thereon. Such facadehas an opening 43 closed by a transparent plate 44 for each of thestacks of packages within the housing. Advertising media or indie-laindicating the particular beverage contained within the packages of thestack may be positioned behind the transparent plate 44 and be visibletherethrough. A lock 45 is mounted on the facade 42 and has a lever 46engageable with a bracket 47 mounted on the housing 10 to fasten thefacade to the housing.

The front of the housing It) is provided with a plurality of openings 56for receiving the individual packages when the packages are placedwithin the apparatus, In order to confine the stacks, a pair of sideplates 51 and 52 project inwardly from the openings 54) to prevent anylateral shifting of the packages. The side plates 51 and 52 have cut-outportions 53 along the lower edges thereof in which the mechanism fordispensing the packs ages is received.

Each group of packages is controlled by the same type of mechanism andalthough the mechanism for one group 3 will be described, it will beapparent that such mechanism will apply to any and all of the groupswithin the device.

In order to dispense one package at a time, the housing is provided witha pair of longitudinally disposed shafts and 56 on which arms 57 and 58respectively are pivotally mounted. Each of such arms is provided withan inwardly turned flange or shoe 59 at the bottom thereof on which thestack of packages is normally adapted to rest. The arms 57 and 58 haveinwardly extending flanges 60 and 61 respectively on their upper endsadjacent to the top 15 and such flanges extend past the center line ofthe stack in spaced relation to each other. The free ends of the flanges60 and 61 are welded or otherwise attached, respectively, to downwardlyextending pins 62 and 63 on the lower end of which are mounted collars64 and rollers 65. The lower ends of the pins 62 and 63 have recessed orflattened portions 66 which receive a spring member 67 to prevent thepins from spreading apart and the unauthorized removal of packages fromthe stack.

Springs 68, coiled about the shafts 55 and 56, each have one end forminga hook which respective-1y engage the arms 57 and 58 to urge the upperportion of such arms outwardly. The outward movement of the upperportions of the arms 57 and 58 causes the shoes 5% on the lower end toextend beneath the stack of packages to support the same until such timeas the upper portions are forced inwardly in a manner to be describedlater.

The shaft 55 pivotally supports an additional pair of arms 70 and 71 andthe shaft 56 pivotally supports an additional pair of arms 72 and 73.Each of such additional arms has a resilient block or mass 74 of spongerubber or the like fastened to its lower end for engaging the stack ofpackages when such mass is moved inwardly through the openings 53 in theside walls 51 and 52 and against the second lowermost package.

The arms 70 and 72 at their upper ends respectivelyhave inwardlyextending flanges 74' and 75 terminating in hook portions 76 and 77respectively, The arms 71 and 73 correspondingly have inwardly extendingflanges 78 and 79 respectively the inner ends of which are bentsubstantially parallel to each other and extending toward the front ofthe apparatus to a position adjacent to the flanges 74 and 75 The freeends of the hook portions 76 and 77 engage the parallel portions of theflanges 7S and 7? in such a manner that the arms 70, 71, 72 and 73 movesimultaneously and apply an equal pressure on the packages.

In order to move the lower ends of the arms 70-73 inwardly and to movethe shoes 5? outwardly, a coin controlled mechanism is providedincluding an operating rod 80 on which a platform 81 is welded orotherwise attached. The platform 81 is provided with downwardlydepending portions 82 having outwardly extending camming flanges 83 withtheir rear edges 84 tapered and adapted to engage the hook portions 76and 77 of the arms 70 and 72.

When the operating rod and platform are moved inwardly or rearwardly,the cams 84 on platform flanges 83 move the upper ends of the arms '70and 72 outwardly and the hook portions 76 and 77 on these arms, whichengage the parallel portions of the flanges '78 and 79 of the arms 71and 73 respectively, similarly move such arms a distance correspondingto the movement of the arms 70 and 72. When the upper portion of thearms 7073 are moved outwardly, the resilient mass '74 on the lower endof each arm will be pivoted inwardly against the second lowermostpackage to retain the stack of packages in position.

The operating rod 80 also has a pair of depending flanges 85 connectedthereto in which the spring member 67 is fixed. When the operating rodis moved rearwardly, the spring member 67 is removed from the recessedportions 66 of the pins 62 and 63 to permit the rollers 65 to moveoutwardly. In order to move the rollers 65, a

coin of a predetermined value is inserted through a coin slot 88 (FIG.7) where it falls by gravity down an incline or chute 89 onto a flatbottom surface portion 90 thereof adjacent the platform 81 and restsagainst the rollers 65. The fiat portion 90 has a slot 91 in which isslidably received an upturned flange or finger 92 carried by theplatform 81. When a coin is deposited on the flat portion $0 and theoperating rod 80 is pressed, the upturned flange 92 will engage one sideedge of the coin and the opposite side edge of the coin, being thrustagainst rollers 65, will force the rollers 65 apart as illustrated inFIG. 13 the platform 81 being in underlying support of the com.

When the rollers 65 are forced apart, the upper portions of the arms 57and 58 are moved inwardly and the lower portions of such arms with theshoes 59' thereon are moved outwardly to release the lowermost packageand permit such package to fall by gravity onto a delivery tray 93. Uponthe passage of the coin the rollers 65 the arms 57 and 58 will bereturned to their normal position by the springs 68. A coil spring 94 isdisposed about gravity into a tray 95 immediately below the operatingrod 80. During the return of such operating rod, the shoes 59 are firstreturned to a position underlying the remaining packages in the stackand thenthe arms 70-73 are released to permit the stack to fall bygravity until such stack encounters the shoes 59.

The delivery tray 93 has a pivot pin at its rear edge for pivotallyconnecting the tray 93 to the housing 10. The forward part of the trayis provided with an operating handle 101 operable within a slot 102 inthe end 13 of the housing and such tray is normally maintained in itsuppermost position by a spring 103.

As illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 9, the coin tray 95 is provided with abracket 105 having a plurality of depending flanges 106 in which aseries of U-shaped members 107 of varying lengths are pivotallysupported. The U-shaped members 107 vary in length substantially thesame distance as the width of one of the packages and when there is afull stack of packages, all of the U-shaped members will be pivotedrearwardly. When the first package has been removed from the stack, theshortest U-shaped mem-' her will pivot downwardly and prevent the stackfrom being raised from beneath and when each succeeding package isremoved, another U-shaped member will swing downwardly by gravity untilall of the packages have been removed and the stack is exhausted.

When the stack is exhausted, a coin stop lever 110 (FIG. 17) is adaptedto be moved over the coin slot 88 to prevent further coins from beinginserted for which no package can be delivered. The coin stop lever 110is pivotally mounted on the shaft 55 and is normally urged to a slotclosing position by a spring 111 having a hook portion 112 on one endwhich engages the lever 110. The lower portion of the lever 110 isprovided with an inwardly projecting lug 113 which projects through aslot in the side wall 51 into the path of movement of the stack ofpackages so that as long as packages remain in the stack, the lug 113 isforced outwardly and the coin slot 88 remains open. When the lastpackage has been dispensed, the lug 113 no longer meets resistance and.

the spring 111 will urge the upper portion of the lever 110 outwardly tocover the coin slot and prevent further coins from being inserted.

V In the operation of the device, a coin of a predetermineddenominataion is inserted in the coin slot 88 and such coin will fall bygravity onto the fiat surface portion 90 of an incline whereupon theoperating rod 80 is pressed so that the camming flanges 83 of theplatform 81 will cause the lower ends of the arms 70-73 to pivotinwardly and grasp the second lowermost package of the stack and uponcontinued movement of the operating rod, the coin will be forced by theplatform finger 92 to engage the rollers 65 to cause the lower ends ofthe arms 57 and 58 to pivot outwardly and permit the lowermost packageto fall by gravity onto the delivery tray 93. When the coin passes therollers 65, the arms 57 and 58 are returned to their original positionso that the shoes 59 on the lower ends of such arms underlie the stackof packages and upon the release of the operating rod, the spring 94will return such rod to its initial outermost extended position. Whenthe operating rod is returned, the coin cannot pass the rollers 65 andis therefore ejected from the coin mechanism into a coin tray 95. Thedelivery tray is then pivoted downwardly so that the operator can removethe package from the machine and place the beverage in powdered formcarried within the package in a cup carried by a holder 28 on one end ofthe device. A desired amount of water is adapted to be poured from thepitcher 22 into the heating vessel 21 and the switch 20 closed to allowthe water within the vessel to reach boiling temperature. The heatedwater may be poured into the cup containing the beverage, after whichthe beverage is modified by the addition of sugar and cream according tothe preference of the consumer.

It will be apparent that a compact unit is provided for the dispensingand preparation of a beverage in a minimum of time and with minimumeffort.

It will be obvious to one skilled in the art that various changes may bemade in the invention without departing from the spirit and scopethereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which isillustrated in the drawings and described in the specification, but onlyas indicated in the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A beverage vending and temperature modification device comprising ahousing,

said housing having structure for mounting a plurality ofbeverage-related packages of substantially uniform size and shape instacked relation therein,

a plurality of generally vertically extending arms pivotally mountedintermediate their length in said housing at opposite sides of andadjacent said structure mounting each stack of the packages,

a resilient block mounted on the lower portion of each of said pluralityof arms adapted to frictionally engage a lower portion of the stack ofpackages for the support of the major portion of the stack of packages,

a pair of additionally generally vertically extending arms pivotallymounted intermediate their length on said housing and closely paralleleach other at said opposite adjacent sides of said stack mountingstructure,

a shoe on the lower end portion of each of said pair of additional armsnormally underlying and supporting all of the packages in the stack,

abutment means on the upper ends of all of said first and secondmentioned arms,

coin-responsive mechanism for controlling the release of packages fromsaid supporting structure for each stack,

said mechanism comprising a movable operating rod,

first means on said operating rod operative when said rod is initiallymoved to engage with the abutment means on said plurality of arms tomove the resilient blocks thereon to frictionally engage the sides of alower'portion of the stack of packages for the support of said majorportion thereof,

second means on said operating rod operative for causing a coin whenplaced thereagainst to sequentially pivot said additional pair of armsduring further movement of said rod to withdraw said shoes thereon fromsupporting positions relative to the lowermost portion of the stack ofpackages for release thereof from the stack and housing,

spring means operative to return said movable operating rod and saidpair of arms to their initial positions relative to the stack-mountingstructure after release of the lowermost portion of the stack,

said housing having component wall means forming support means forliquid supply containers thereon,

said support means of said housing component wall means havingtemperature-modifying means supported thereby for modifying thetemperature of the liquid supply containers,

and means for controlling the flow of heating energy to saidtemperature-modifying means,

each of the packages supported within said housing being functionallyrelated to the liquid of said liquid containers for ultimate intimateassociation therewith.

2.. A dispenser for commodities in package form including a housing,

said housing including means therein for mounting a plurality ofcommodity packages in at least one stack having a substantially verticalcentral plane,

a pair of substantially vertically extending arms each of which ispivotally mounted intermediate its length in said housing adjacent eachside of the stack of packages in oppositely disposed relation,

a flange on the upper end of each of said arms disposed above the stackof packages and extending toward the opposite side thereof,

said flange of each of said oppositely positioned arms extending beyondsaid central plane and having a roller mounted on the end thereof, witheach roller intersecting a common substantially horizontal plane,

a shoe on the lower end of each of said arms normally positioned insupporting relation to the entire stack of packages,

a plurality of additional substantially vertically extending arms eachpivotally mounted intermediate its length in said housing coaxially ofsaid pair of arms and adjacent each side of the stack of packages inoppositely disposed relation,

interrelated flange means on the upper end of each of said additionalarms disposed above said stack of packages and extending inwardlytowards said central' plane,

a resilient block mounted on the lower end portion of each of saidadditional arms, said resilient block being normally positioned out ofcontact with said packages but movable when actuated to frictionally andholdingly engage a lower portion of the stack for the support of themajor portion of the packages thereof,

coin-responsive mechanism for controlling the release of packages fromsaid stack-supporting structure, said mechanism including manuallyoperable operating rod mounted for axial sliding movement,

a platform on said operating rod having outwardly extending cammingflanges operative when said rod is initially axially moved to thrustagainst said interrelated flange means of said plurality of additionalarms to effect movement thereof whereby said resilient blocks are movedinto frictional holding contact with the stacked packages to eifectsupport of the upper major portion thereof,

coin entry slot means in said housing, a

means on said platform for thrustingly engaging a coin from said entryslot means for movement therewith when said rod is moved axially bymanual pressure, to said plurality of additional arms by the thrust ofthe coin against said rollers during continued said pair of arms beingsequentially actuated relative manual actuation of said rod to effectwithdrawal of the shoes on said pair of arms from the bottom of thestack of packages for the release of the lowermost portion thereof,

spring means to return the operating rod and said pair of arms to theirinitial positions when the manual pressure on said rod is released,

a discharge tray for receiving the packages when released from saidstack,

a coin stop lever in said housing operative to prevent insertion ofcoins in said coin slot when the stack of packages in said mountingmeans is exhausted,

and means preventing the stack from being raised from beneath.

3. Package vending apparatus comprising,

a housing including means for mounting a plurality of packages ofsubstantially uniform size in at least one substantially vertical stacktherein,

a pair of substantially vertically extending arms each pivotally mountedin said housing intermediate their length on substantially parallel axesdisposed adjacent opposite sides of the vertical stack of packages,

flange means on the lower ends of said pair of arms normally extendingunder the bottom edges of said stack of packages and supporting theWeight thereof,

' abutment means on the upper ends of each of said arms and overlyingsaid stack of packages,

a plurality of additional arms mounted in said housing at each side ofsaid stack and coaxially of each of said first-mentioned arms,

resilient means on the lower end portion of each of said pivotallymounted additional arms normally free of but adapted to be moved intofrictional supporting engagement with at least the second lowermostpackage of the stack,

abutment means on the upper ends of said additional arms overlying thestack of packages and spaced vertically from said abutment means on saidpair of arms,

means for sequentially actuating said pair of arms and said additionalarms comprising,

coin controlled mechanism having a manually movable operating rod,

said rod having means thereon operable in conjunction with a coin placedthereon when said rod is manually moved from an initial position tosequently engage the abutment means on said mulitple additional arms andsaid pair of arms to first move the resilient means on said multipleadditional arms into lateral frictional supporting contact with the saidsecond lowest package in the stack and thereafter move the flange meansof said pair of arms out from supporting relation under the stack ofpackages whereby to release the said lowermost package from the stackfor removal from said housing,

and spring means operative to move said pair of arms and said operatingrod back to their initial positions when the manually applied pressureacting thereagainst is released. 7

4. The package vending apparatus of claim 3 wherein said housingincludes,

prising,

a housing having a plurality of means for mounting a plurality of stacksof packages wherein the packages of each stack are of substantiallyuniform size,

each of said mounting means having a pair of oppositely disposedparallel sides having an aperture therein disposed abreast of the secondlowermost package,

a shaft mounted in said housing and disposed adjacent to and parallel toeach of the parallel sides of each one of said mounting means,

a plurality of generally vertically extending arms pivotally mounted insaid housing intermediate their lengths on said shafts,

a resilient block on the lower end of each of said arms positionedabreast of but normally spaced outwardly of said apertures in saidpackage mounting means,

abutment means on the upper end of each of said plurality of armsoverlying each of said stack mounting means,

a pair of generally vertically extending arms each pivotally mounted oneach of said shafts and having laterally extending flange means on thelower end thereof normally disposed in underlying supporting relation toeach stack of packages,

roller abutment means on the upper ends of said pair of arms extendingabove and across the upper end of the stack in over-centered relationthereto at an elevation spaced from said abutment means on saidfirst-mentioned arms,

coin-controlled mechanism for controlling the release of packages fromeach of said stack supporting means comprising,

an operating rod mounted for axial movement above the-stack and betweeneach of said abutment means on said plurality and said pair of arms,

means on said axially movable operating rod operable in conjunction witha coin to engage both said arm abutment means comprising,

platform means having camming flanges thereon and means for thrustinglyengaging a coin when placed thereagainst whereby when said rod is movedby' pressure axially in one direction said camming flanges and saidmeans are sequentially operative through engagement with said abutmentmeans on said plurality and said pair of arms to first move saidresilient blocks through said apertures into lateral supportingfrictional contact with the second lowermost package of the stack andthereafter move the said laterally extending flange means fromsupporting relation under the stack of packages to thereby release thelowermost package therefrom,

and resilient means operative to return said operating rod and said pairof arms to their normal initial position when pressure is removed fromsaid rod and said abutment means.

6. A dispenser as defined in claim 5 and including a coin slot means insaid housing for insertion of the coin into operative position relativeto said means on said platform,

means responsive to the packages in each stack for preventing theinsertion of a coin in said slot when the stack is exhausted,

and means for preventing the unauthorized removal of packages from thestacks in said housing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 879,217 2/08Thrasher 221-18 906,666 12/08 Towers 221-298 1,175,469 3/16 Mills 194-751,314,852 9/19 Burdine 22-1-298 1,827,900 10/31 Morrison 221-2981,830,805 11/31 Myer 221-298 2,180,733 11/39 Fowler 219-43 SAMUEL F.COLEMAN, Primary Examiner. WILLIAM B. LA BORDE, Examiner.

1. A BEVERAGE VENDING AND TEMPERATURE MODIFICATION DEVICE COMPRISING AHOUSING, SAID HOUSING HAVING STRUCTURE FOR MOUNTING A PLURALITY OFBEVERAGE-RELATED PACKAGES OF SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM SIZE AND SHAPE INSTAKCED RELATION THEREIN, A PLURALITY OF GENERALLY VERTICALLY EXTENDINGARMS PIVOTALLY MOUNTED INTERMEDIATE THEIR LENGTH IN SAID HOUSING ATOPPOSITE SIDES OF AND ADJACENT SAID STRUCTURE MOUNTING EACH STACK OF THEPACKAGES, A RESILIENT BLOCK MOUNTED ON THE LOWER PORTION OF EACH OF SAIDPLURALITY OF ARMS ADAPTED TO FRICTIONALLY ENGAGE A LOWER PORTION OF THESTACK OF PACKAGES FO THE SUPPORT OF THE MAJOR PORTION OF THE STACK OFPACKAGES, A PAIR OF ADDITIONALLY GENERALLY VERTICALLY EXTENDING ARMSPIVOTALLY MOUNTED INTERMEDIATE THEIR LENGTH ON SAID HOUSING AND CLOSELYPARALLEL EACH OTHER AT SAID OPPOSITE ADJACENT SIDES OF SAID STACKMOUNTING STRUCTURE, A SHOE ON THE LOWER END PORTION OF EACH OF SAID PAIROF ADDITIONAL ARMS NORMALLY UNDERLYING AND SUPPORTING ALL OF THEPACKAGES IN THE STACK, ABUTMENT MEANS ON THE UPPER ENDS OF ALL OF SAIDFIRST AND SECOND MENTIONED ARMS. COIN-RESPONSIVE MECHANISM FORCONTROLLING THE RELEASE OF PACKAGES FROM SAID SUPPORTING STRUCTURE FOREACH STACK, SAID MECHANISM COMPRISING A MOVABLE OPERATING ROD, FIRSTMEANS ON SAID OPERATING ROD OPERATIVE WHEN SAID ROD IS INITIALLY MOVEDTO ENGGE WITH THE ABUTMENT MEANS ON SAID PLURALITY OF ARMS TO MOVE THERESILIENT BLOCKS THEREON TO FRICTIONALLY ENGAGE THE SIDES OF A LOWERPORTION OF THE STACK OF PACKAGES FOR THE SUPPORT OF SAID MAJOR PORTIONTHEREOF, SECOND MEANS ON SAID OPERATING ROD OPRATIVE FOR CAUSING A COINWHEN PLACED THEREAGAINST TO SEQUENTIALLY PIVOT SAID ADDITIONAL PAIR OFARMS DURING FURTHER MOVEMENT OF SAID ROD TO WITHDRAW SAID SHOES THEREONFROM SUPPORTING POSITIONS RELATIVE TO THE LOWERMOST PORTION OF THE STACKOF PACKAGES FOR RELEASE THEREOF FROM THE STACK AND HOUSING, SPRING MEANSOPERATIVE TO RETURN SAID MOVABLE OPERATING ROD AND SAID PAIR OF ARMS TOTHEIR INITIAL POSITIONS RELATIVE TO THE STACK-MOUNTING STRUCTURE AFTERRELEASE OF THE LOWERMOST PORTION OF THE STACK, SAID HOUSING HAVINGCOMPONENT WALL MEANS FORMING SUPPORT MEANS FOR LIQUID SUPPLY CONTAINERSTHEREON, SAID SUPPORT MEANS OF SAID HOUSING COMPONENT WALL MEANS HAVINGTEMPERATURE-MODIFYING MEANS SUPPORTED THEREBY FOR MODIFYING THETEMPERATURE OF THE LIQUID SUPPLY CONTAINERS, AND MEANS FOR CONTROLLINGTHE FLOW OF HEATING ENERGY TO SAID TEMPERATURE-MODIFYING MEANS, EACH OFTHE PACKAGES SUPPORTED WITHIN SAID HOUSING BEING FUNCTIONALLY RELATED TOTHE LIQUID OF SAID LIQUID CONTAINERS FOR ULTIMATE INTIMATE ASSOCIATIONTHEREWITH..